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Grow Bushels of Tomatoes
Tomatoes are great fruits, tasty and versatile. You can grow bushels of tomatoes in your own garden each year. There are over 10,000 varieties of tomatoes to choose from. And they come in a variety of colors and sizes too.
The tomato is actually a berry, but most people think of is as a vegetable. The Solanum lycopersicum plant originated in central and south America and is now cultivates all over the world. You can eat them fresh, make salsa, cook up some healthy tomato sauce to us in any dish, make soup, or use the sun to dry them for even more uses.
Why would you buy these at the grocery store when you can grow all you could ever want right at home. There is nothing better than fresh picked tomatoes right off the vine. With these easy tips, you can enjoy them all summer long too.
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6 Tricks for growing Tomatoes
1. Don’t Crowd Them
Keep your seedlings separated and give them room to spread their first branches. Make sure each seedling has its own pot for good root development and overall health. Crowding causes stress for the little plants and will lead to a weaker plant that will be prone to disease later on.
Keep the spacing when you transplant too. You should space them out about 1 to 2 feet in your garden. This helps prevent disease, gives them room to bush out to produce better fruits. This will also give you room to stake them up for support when they are loaded with fruits.
2. Let Them Have Light
Tomatoes thrive in full sunlight. Have you ever driven past a commercial field? Those plants are short, dark green and loaded with tomatoes! Ours at home don’t get nearly the amount of fertilizer that those do, so they have lighter leaves, and grow taller.
Plants exhibit phototropism, this helps them grow toward the sun. This is why it is important to turn your houseplants in the window every once in a while, so they don’t stay bent over. It also causes our tomato plants to grow tall and leggy if not given enough light. Do always plant them in full sun or keep them close to some artificial light.
3. Keep Them Warm
Tomatoes are warm weather crop; they do not do well in cold climates. It is important to keep them protected from cold as they are starting out, and to cover them if you are going to get a frost.
Once the plants are established after transplanting, give them some mulch. This will help hold in heat and water, two things tomato plants love! You can use bark, straw, newspaper, compost, or grass clippings to mulch your tomatoes.
4. Plant Them Deep
Tomatoes are one of the vegetables that will sprout roots from all over the stem. In nature, they don’t get held up on stakes, they grow vertically on the ground (I’ve seen a tomato patch do well this way). The stems are capable of sprouting roots along the soil surface to increase nutrient and water absorption.
When you transplant your seedlings, don’t be shy, bury them up to their first leaves. This will allow that stem to produce more roots, and thus help the plant yield more tomatoes. After all, more water and nutrients absorbed, more tasty fruits.
5. Keep Them Pruned
While giving them support, it is also important to get rid of suckers on the stems. These steal the nutrients from new growth that will actually provide fruits. Some say not to pinch them off, they will collect sunlight and contribute to sugar production. I feel that my best crops have been from plants that had suckers removed.
6. Plenty of Water
Tomatoes love water! You can’t get juicy fruits without plenty of water. Do be careful not to water from above, or you might spread soil borne diseases. This will decimate your crop for sure. Take the time to water the base of each plant or use anGrowing Tomatoes in The Garden
It is possible to produce enough tomatoes to enjoy all season and have plenty to can and cook for winter too. These tips are reliable to getting fantastic harvests from your garden. Plus, at home, you are in control of what fertilizers you put on your plants for healthier and organic foods. Check out these other great posts about gardening: Vegetables that Grow Great in Containers for Small Spaces. 10 Best Fruit Trees for your Homestead Orchard How to Sustainably Practice Permaculture Essential Herbs for Cooking and How to Grow and Preserve Them
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